Designed by Real Filmmakers for Real Filmmakers !
EASY BUDGET - Movie Budgeting Software.

TECHNICAL SUPPORT

• I don't like all those zeros that appear in an account which is blank. How do I get rid of them?

• I 'm not able to insert the dates on the "Top Sheet" of Easy Budget for Commercials. No matter what I do, Easy Budget doesn't seem to want to accept the dates?

• I can't get Easy Budget to load at all! Every time I type in my password the program stops and says, "Incorrect Password!" Help!

• Some boxes, especially account totals, are often filled with number signs (####), instead of actual numbers. What's wrong?

• I keep getting this error message, "Locked or protected cells cannot be changed". When I click on TOOLS and then UNPROTECT, my serial number doesn't work. What's up?

• I don't think my EASY BUDGET for Feature Films is adding right! I put in the current rate for Day Players, but instead of 4 days times the daily rate, it gives me the weekly rate.

• The total number of crew members is incorrect. By my count we have 63 crew members, but EASY BUDGET says we have only 60.

• How do I change EASY BUDGET to display different currency formats?

Q1. I don't like all those zeros that appear in an account which is blank. How do I get rid of them?
A. The zeros display in empty accounts because of the default settings in your spreadsheet program. Your spreadsheet controls how Easy Budget displays the zero values. Here's how to change it:

Excel, and most other spreadsheets follow the same steps...

1. Click on TOOLS
2. Select, OPTIONS from the drop-down list
3. Click on the VIEW tab
4. Locate the box labeled ZERO VALUES
5. De-select (remove the check mark) from the Zero Values box
6. Click OKAY

The zeros are gone.

For the current Feature version of Easy Budget (v6), all the zero values from every page will disappear. Because your spreadsheet sees each page of the Commercial budget as a separate entity, you'll need to follow this procedure for each page.

It's recommended that you KEEP the zero values visible until you've completed the budget and are ready to print. For most users, the zeros are a good reminder that you might have to enter something in an account.

Keep in mind that any BLUE color indicates a place where you CAN enter a figure, and BLACK indicates a value that Easy Budget calculates for you (including zero values).

Q2. I'm not able to insert the dates on the "Top Sheet" of Easy Budget for Commercials. No matter what I do, Easy Budget doesn't seem to want to accept the dates?
A. This is a basic design issue with all spreadsheets, but there's an easy fix.

You have this problem because the actual cell where you insert the date (or other number), may not be the same place it actually appears on the budget page.

Easy Budget is designed so that pressing the TAB key will automatically take you to the next cell where you CAN input data...like the date for instance.

Position the cell selector on the far left cell of the date line on the Top Sheet (A3). Now, press the TAB key once. The cell selector moves to the exact cell where you can input the date in the MM/DD/YY format. Now, press TAB again or ENTER. Notice that the location where you typed the date and where it appears are different. If you pressed ENTER, press the TAB key once more to move to the Actualization Date.

Q3. I can't get Easy Budget to load at all! Every time I type in my password the program stops and says, "Incorrect Password!" Help!
A. The password, which is the serial number printed on your original Easy Budget disc, is "case sensitive." That is, "AB6281" is not the same as "ab6281."

Make sure the NUMLOCK key is OFF. Many keyboards have a small light which indicates when the numlock key is on. This can also cause a problem if the numlock key is on and you are using the number key pad on the right side of your keyboard.

Easy budget passwords are always in lower case.

Q4. Some boxes, especially account totals, are often filled with number signs (####), instead of actual numbers. What's wrong?
A. The "####'s" you see are caused because of a conflict between your computer's video card, the video display driver, and the Windows or Macintosh operating system.

For various technical reasons, these parts of your computer system are unable to "draw" the numbers on your screen in the space provided. Don't worry, your numbers ARE there. Your computer just can't display them to you.

Usually, changing the "Zoom Control" setting will get rid of the problem for you. If you don't see the Zoom Control box on the tool bar, click on VIEW, and then on ZOOM to change the setting.

Many users find that a setting of 75% works well for them. If 75% doesn't work, try another setting...100% or more if necessary. Also, you may find the problem only happens on certain pages.

Regardless of how it looks on screen, the printed page should be fine since this is a video error, and not a printer problem. If changing the Zoom Control doesn't help, try reloading your video driver, or use the basic video driver which comes with your operating system.

Q5. I keep getting this error message, "Locked or protected cells cannot be changed". When I click on TOOLS and then UNPROTECT, my serial number doesn't work. What's up?
A. This really isn't an error message at all. Your serial number is used to open the program only, not to unlock "protected cells". The cells you're trying to change are locked because they contain complex formulas. If these cells were changed your budget would no longer work. See your User manual for more details on this subject.

Q6. I don't think my EASY BUDGET for Feature Films is adding right! I put in the current rate for Day Players, but instead of 4 days times the daily rate, it gives me the weekly rate.
A. Relax, EASY BUDGET isn't adding wrong. EASY BUDGET knows that it's cheaper to hire an actor for the weekly rate if you're going to use this actor for more than three days. It inserts the weekly rate because it's cheaper overall than the daily rate.

Don't forget that when you sign this actor to a contract, make sure it's a weekly, not a daily contract. SAG (and other unions), won't let you change an actor from a daily to a weekly contract after you've signed a contract with them.

If this actor will be a "drop and pickup," (i.e.: works a few days at the beginning of your shoot, and then comes back much later to finish), you should put the actor down twice. If you don't get a waiver from the actor and SAG, you'll have to pay the actor for the WHOLE period. It might be time to adjust the shooting schedule?

Q7. The total number of crew members is incorrect. By my count we have 63 crew members, but EASY BUDGET says we have only 60.
A. You need to carefully look at each person in every account. If you want a person to be considered as a crew member, you need to have a number 1 in the "C" or "housed" column. This is important because EASY BUDGET makes it's calculations for crew-related costs (like transportation, accomodations, food, per diem, etc.), based on your input.

If you have two crew members on the same line (like Extra Labor), make sure you put a 2 in that instead of 1.

Q8. How do I change EASY BUDGET to display different currency formats?
A. The printing and display of currency formats like "$" or "£" or "„" are determined by the "regional settings" of you computer and not by EASY BUDGET or your spreadsheet.

For Windows® computers, click on MY COMPUTER, CONTROL PANEL, and then on REGIONAL SETTINGS (the icon that looks like a globe.) Next, click on the tab which says CURRENCY.

In the box labeled, Currency symbol, select the currency you want to use from the drop-down selection. You will need to restart your computer to see the changes.

The steps to change the currency format for a Macintosh® computer are similar.